Nearly doubling last year's take of seven awards, Ohlone College's student-run newspaper, The Monitor, brought home a total of 12 awards from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges' (JACC) Northern California conference at the end of September.

The Monitor's Faculty Advisor Rob Dennis, Editor-in-Chief Louis LaVenture, and Photo Editor Tam Duong, Jr. represented Ohlone College at the JACC conference held at Sacramento State University. The conference included workshops and competitions throughout the day, presented by working journalists and many experts in the media.

The Monitor won the coveted Newspaper General Excellence award, which is presented to nine community colleges that exhibit high standards in print form. Last semester the online version of the Monitor won the general excellence award.

In addition to this high honor, other awards won by the Ohlone Monitor student newspaper staff include: Manika Casterline, who won first place for Inside Page Layout (Tabloid); second place awards in the same category went to Celia Freire and LaVenture; and a fourth place for Photo illustration went to Duong.

Other winners include Hannah Walrod, who took second place for Information Graphic and third place for Student Designed Advertisement; Duong, who won third place for Photo Illustration and second place for Sports Feature Photo; Tara Ingraham, who won fourth place for Feature Photo; LaVenture and Duong who teamed up to win fourth place for Information Graphic; and LaVenture who garnered an honorable mention for Sports Game Story and the on-the-spot Opinion Writing Contest.